Bestseller

Maybe she has a lot of friends

Maybe she has a lot of friends

Natalie was watering the hanging plants on the front porch when Felix pulled into the driveway. She was letting off steam after a call with one of her clients. The air was cooling down and tending to her petunias was good therapy.

Her neighbor, Aimee, waved from her porch, at the respectful distance that suburban neighborhoods provide to prevent excessive socialization. Natalie wondered about Aimee. There was always a different car in her driveway in addition to her own. She was no longer married and had no kids, although she did go out regularly, possibly to a job. Sometimes Natalie would see a guy pull in and unload groceries, or another mowing the lawn (this she only noticed because it disturbed her during the day). She wasn’t quite sure which, if any, of the guys “belonged” to Aimee. The grocery guy was youthful and athletic. The lawn mowing man was distinguished, with a receding hairline and trendy eyeglasses. The attention Aimee received incited a certain degree of envy in Natalie’s heart.

Felix pulled into the driveway, smiling when he saw his wife watering the flowers. It was such a picturesque, homey scene. He took out his phone and snapped a photo.

“When I become famous, I’ll need shots like this on social media to show that I’m a regular guy.”

Natalie wanted to pour some water over his head, but she wasn’t quite sure he was serious. There was a fine line between conformist and cynical. Although Natalie didn’t lack the discernment to understand her husband, she needed to maintain her belief in him despite the little red flags. Felix had been there for her after she quit the agency, and now he was the vulnerable one. The structure of their household could not bear the fall of a single card.

“How was the event?” Natalie asked.

“It was great!” Felix responded. “David Dill is such a good resource! He even offered to be a guest on The Self Pub podcast. And he has a new service called Chapter One.”

“How much will that cost?”

“Not sure yet. There’s a trial enrollment till the end of the month if you subscribe to the Dilligent podcast.”

The arrival of a car next door caught Natalie’s eye. Sure enough, an attractive man carrying flowers stepped out.

“Don’t you ever wonder,” she said to Felix, “what’s going on over there?”

“Maybe she has a lot of friends.”

“But they’re all guys.”

“So, she’s dating!”

“But they all keep coming back.”

“Listen, Nat, I’d love to chat about the neighbors, but I have got to get a chapter written so I can take advantage of David Dill’s new service.”

Felix kissed Natalie on the cheek and asked, “What’s for dinner?”

“Today is Wednesday. You’re in charge, remember?”

“Oh, right!” Felix thought for a minute, then added, “Do you mind if I invite Andy over? He looked a little down today.”

“Sure.”

Natalie sat on the wicker chair purchased from Pottery Barn, fulfilled by Anaconda. She put her feet up on the matching ottoman, thinking that she should order replacement slipcovers before Anaconda drove the manufacturer out of business altogether. She waited for the inevitable arrival of Andy with takeout from Taj Mahal.

Her efforts to not-think were interrupted by the sight of him pulling into the driveway. He came up the porch steps and sat down in the other armchair.

“Thanks for having me, Natalie,” he said, embarrassed.

“You’re always welcome, Andy. Thank you for picking up our dinner. How are things going?”

Andy’s lips quivered a little. “Pretty well.”

“Come on. I can see you’re upset.”

“It’s just the same old thing,” he answered. “In certain situations, I start to lose it. My throat closes up, and then, my legs feel like they have a life of their own. When that happens, I have to sit somewhere protected. I know it’s ridiculous, but I can’t control it.”

Natalie squeezed his hand. “How do you feel right now?”

“Oh, I always feel okay when I’m around you.” He looked up at the sky and continued, “Women, in general, make me feel safer. Maybe I should bring the food inside before it gets cold.”

“No worries. Felix is all hot about writing his first chapter.”

She paused, then added, “You know, Andy, I feel safer around you, too.”

Natalie pushed herself up from the armchair with her hands, looked over at her neighbor’s house, and led the way inside.

Felix was tapping away on his laptop, which he had set on the smooth granite counter, waiting for the food to arrive.

“How’s chapter one coming along?” Natalie asked.

“Oh, I’m still working on the blurb. I have to run the word strings through the keyword app, which is giving me some amazing suggestions!”

“Shouldn’t you write at least part of the story before doing the description?”

“That’s what I thought,” Andy offered.

Natalie brought the plates over. “I hope you got some chicken biryani.”

“Of course!” said Andy.

“The thing is,” said Felix, helping himself to some rice, “I’m having a little trouble getting the story started. So, I wanted to reverse-engineer it from the blurb.”

There it was again, thought Natalie. A little red flag, waving uncertainly.

“In what genre are you writing? Have you decided?”

“I want to write a cli-fi. Everyone says it’s the next big thing. I got some ideas for my blurb online, but I need to do more research.”

Natalie mused. “You know, I have a new client, a nonprofit focused on climate change awareness. They want to develop an educational program for elementary schools. We’re working on a simple game where the children input weather data and see the outcome in animated charts. Anyway, I’ve got lots of information if you need it.”

“That’s nice, honey, but I’m going to need something for an adult audience.”

Andy knit his eyebrows. “You could still structure it like a fairy tale and make the weather be like the Big Bad Wolf.”

Felix’s dismissive expression morphed to delight when Natalie said, “That’s not a bad idea!”

Felix said, “Andy, you’re a genius.” He spooned a dollop of dahl onto his plate. He tried to remember some of the stories he had heard as a child, but he could only think of Hansel and Gretel.

But there was something there. I mean, Felix thought, that was definitely a bestseller.